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Bodily illusions rearrange the sense of touch

The brain is bombarded by information about the physical proportions of our bodies. The most familiar sensations, such as a puff of wind or the brush of our own shirt sleeve, serve to constantly remind the brain of the body's outer bounds, creating a sense of what is known as proprioception.

25 Jul 2005

New insight into age-related macular degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration is the leading cause of blindness in older adults, yet researchers are still in the dark about many of the factors that cause this incurable disease.

25 Jul 2005

Multiple rare mutations within a single gene may increase risk for autism

While debate still rages over the 'cause' of autism, mounting evidence suggests that genetic factors play a major role in the disease.

25 Jul 2005

Breathing in large quantities of salt particles has just the same effect on blood pressure as eating a salty diet

Workers in salt factories, who inhale large amounts of salt particles, are at risk of high blood pressure due to the increased salt intake.

25 Jul 2005

Variation in HIV's ability to disable host defenses contributes to rapid evolution

One of the reasons HIV is so difficult to contain and treat is its rapid evolution. Understanding how host defenses and viral countermeasures contribute to that evolution is vital.

25 Jul 2005

Percutaneous core-needle biopsy, provides samples of tissue suitable for accurate initial diagnosis of a solid tumor

Inserting biopsy needles through the skin appears to be a safe and reliable alternative to surgery for obtaining diagnostic samples of a suspected solid tumor in children, according to results of a study by investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

25 Jul 2005

Plant toxins in the diets of early humans drove the evolution of taste

Plant toxins in the diets of early humans drove the evolution of a bitter taste receptor better able to detect them, suggests new genetic research by scientists at University College London, Duke University Medical Center, and the German Institute of Human Nutrition.

25 Jul 2005

In vivo engineering of organs: The bone bioreactor

An international team of biomedical engineers has demonstrated for the first time that it is possible to grow healthy new bone reliably in one part of the body and use it to repair damaged bone at a different location.

25 Jul 2005

Study offers a unique perspective on the beginnings of the alcohol experience and usage patterns of 12-year-olds

Clues looking into the root causes of alcoholism are emerging from new findings that center on the genetic patterns of young drinkers, with particular focus on why adolescents are more likely to drink large quantities of alcohol even if they need more alcohol to get the effects they desire.

25 Jul 2005

Pneumonia - another use for statins

Patients hospitalised because of pneumonia are at less risk of dying from the disease if they have been taking the widely used cholesterol-lowering drugs 'statins' before hospital admission.

25 Jul 2005

New treatment that boosts the stomach's 'full' signal offers new way of tackling growing obesity epidemic

A hormone found in the small intestine has provided a crucial breakthrough in developing new drugs to tackle the growing obesity epidemic, claim scientists. Obesity now affects more than half of all UK adults, costing the UK up to 3.7 billion pounds a year in sickness absence and treatments.

25 Jul 2005

Appeal court in UK overturns "shaken baby" convictions

London's Court of Appeal has cleared two people who were jailed over so-called "shaken baby" cases.

25 Jul 2005

British scientist who discovered link with smoking and cancer, dies at 92

The British scientist Sir Richard Doll, who was the first scientist to expose the link between smoking and lung cancer, has died in hospital, after a short illness; he was 92.

25 Jul 2005

U.S. scientists find 3 molecules that could help fight Alzheimer's

A team of scientists at the Neuroscience Research Institute at the University of California, Santa Barbara, say they have identified three molecules that appear to stop a key culprit behind Alzheimer's disease.

25 Jul 2005

Botox controls excess sweating as well as ironing out those wrinkles

According to researchers at the St. Louis University School of Medicine, Botox may do more than plump out those wrinkles.

25 Jul 2005

17 percent of infants living near "stop and go" traffic suffer from wheezing

University of Cincinnati (UC) environmental health researchers have found that 17 percent of infants living near "stop and go" traffic suffer from wheezing.

24 Jul 2005

Less than 1 percent of health plan members are actually diagnosed with alcoholism or related disorders

Less than 1 percent of health plan members are actually diagnosed with alcoholism or related disorders, according to data from a national performance measurement project released today in New York City at the American Medical Association Media Briefing, Alcohol Dependence: From Science to Solutions.

24 Jul 2005

Potential new target for stomach cancer therapy

It started several years ago with the observation that a large group of seemingly unconnected genes were behaving differently in patients with stomach cancer.

24 Jul 2005

Discovery of a receptor that appears to function as one "lock" that HSV opens to allow it to enter human cells

It's one of the most common viruses in America, and one that causes the most guilt and shame. It can get inside almost any kind of human cell, reproduce in vast numbers, and linger for years in the body, causing everything from recurrent genital blisters to sores around the mouth. Its complications can kill, and it may increase susceptibility to many nerve and brain disorders.

24 Jul 2005

New clues for the understanding of dementia

Researchers at the Medical Research Council MRC Prion Unit and the Department of Neurodegenerative Disease at the Institute of Neurology, University College London - in collaboration with groups from Copenhagen, Aarhus, Lund and Cambridge - have identified a gene that, when mutated, causes an early onset dementia.

24 Jul 2005